Schmidt and Brazoban

By now, chances are you’ve read that Jason Schmidt will undergo arthroscopic surgery to his right shoulder tomorrow night, which is obviously a disappointing piece of news on an otherwise enjoyable night in Toronto. We obviously tried the conservative approach with rehab and rest but it hasn’t worked, so they’re going to look inside the shoulder and see if they find anything wrong. We certainly wish him the best in a speedy recovery.

The same holds true for Yhency Brazoban, whose diagnosis is more clear. He has a torn labrum and will require surgery on Friday. Stan Conte wants to wait until they do the surgery to offer a real prognosis, but this is certainly not what we wanted to hear, given how well is elbow responded to the Tommy John surgery last year.

Both of these pieces of news come on a night when the team is pounding the Jays with 10 runs, including a homer from Russell Martin in his return to Canada, three hits and four RBI from Gonzalez, and tons of hitting up and down the lineup. Russell was clearly overwhelmed by the support he’s received to jump him up to first place in the All-Star balloting and the requests to speak with him have increased exponentially. We had a press conference for him today that was attended by about 30 reporters, including seven TV cameras. Safe to say he’s huge out here.

That’s good, too, because the Mets have started their own campaign to get Lo Duca into the All-Star Game as the starter. It’s East Coast vs. West Coast and as some of you remember, it seemed like Cesar Izturis had made the All-Star Game a couple years ago, only to be upset in the final couple of days by St. Louis. Most of you have voted, but maybe your friends haven’t who are baseball fans. Keep it going!

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32 Comments

Nope I have reserved all of my votes and as I have said many times to all Vote for the BEST NL AS team Martin showed again tonight why he is the best! Vote Often and Vote Smart this is the year for the NL to retake MLB!

Great game tonight with most of our Starters showing that they can dominate against mediocre pitching. Halladay tomorrow…Lets see if grady can put it together for a series win.

1) Very disappointing to hear about Schmidt. This offseason, he seemed like one of the best signings overall, but he hasn’t quite worked out this year. I will say that even after a few rough outings, Wolf has been better than I expected in the rotation, so it might balance out.

2) Right now one of the most exciting things to watch is when Juan Pierre walks. When that happens, it’s like the floodgates are open and here comes the offense. Maybe it’s because he doesn’t do it a lot, or maybe he just messes with the pitcher’s head, but Pierre is pretty good when he’s on base. Stealing second and third was a nice touch too. Kudos to him, and I hope he has a lot more good games like this one.

3) Martin had the RBI single and the homer for his dad to see. Remember to go to Yahoo or hotmail to create a new email address to vote for him!

4) I wondered why Nomar was starting, Pierre was still in the 2, Betemit was on the bench behind Abreu, and Anderson was DHing. Everyone did well, and also Betemit walked in his only plate apperace. Feels good to be wrong.

5) I feel good about the next couple days, with Kuo and Billingsley starting. I don’t know if it would be more advantageous to start Lowe on Thursday and Billingsley on Friday, but the rotation looks solid either way.

I Have 3 accounts my wife 3 and my kids have 2 each and I’ll vote them all tonight after I finish my research on the Top NL players with a chance.All the while checking for the worst AL players with a chance.

We’ve played tougher teams more often and have a better winning % – we are comparable with SD against .500 or worse teams but better against the best, and lets see how the D-Backs look after playing Atl/Mil/FLA

Ok Hallday is 7-2 but his era is over 4 and we took over 4 off of there BP Kuo comes in Knock’s them down we take the series to Bills for our first AL Sweep in how long?Then on to our second in the same week We are Gonna Gain some ground as The Sox show up the pads.

Realistically I don’t believe that we can count on either Schmidt or Brazoban returning this season, so we better proceed without them. In Brazoban’s case it’s probably what afflicts so many young pitchers – just a case of throwing their arms out early in the career. With Schmidt the situation should have been anticipated before we gave him the huge contract. It was a high risk situation, since there were ample signs of that velocity loss throughout last season. It’s a bummer, but one that I put squarely on Colletti’s shoulders and his lack of better judgment.

Great game last night. Kudos to JP on his great game. If he can get on base ,he could be an exciting player to watch. I’ve been thinking about the up coming off season and how I would improve the Dodgers offense. You people may think I’m crazy, but what about having Russ go back to playing 3rd and trying to sign either Posada or even Lo Duca to catch. This would keep Martins bat fresh and he could still catch 1 game a week.

Bear,
Schmidt was touted all offseason long as one of the two best pitchers available. None of the commentators I read/listened to said anything about his struggles last season being “red flags” to teams who wanted to sign him. Coletti is not a medical man, and his medical man assured him that Schmidt was not unhealthy.

One reason Schimdt’s signing is still great – 3 years, not SEVEN like Zito got. (Or was it 8?) Imagine if Ned had thrown a long-term contract at him…

Remember, the Braves signed Tim Hudson two years ago, and he was awful for two seasons, partially due to health. Then this season, he’s pitching very well again. After Schimdt has his surgery and recovers, he could be an excellent aid down the stretch or in the next two seasons. All is not lost.

Bluebleeder –
Barrett isn’t a good hitter. His OBP is worse than JP’s, he has a .256 average thus far this season (replacing a catcher with a .253 average). He has some pop (9 hr), but strikes out twice as much as he walks. He has more RBIs than the Pads’ current catcher, but he will get fewer chances to drive in runs in SD because of the Pads’ awful OBP and AVG. Looking at his OPS, he had only 3 years over .800 when he played regularly, and is currently at .734 for the season. This guy is not an offensive solution for the Padres, but is more of the same of what they already have – low-average, low-OBP, decent-power hitters. And defensively, he’s nothing to scream about either.

I’m glad that the Pads made this trade and not one to improve their offense. This guy doesn’t even seem to be a good teammate, and hasn’t been handling a decent pitching staff in Chicago very well. He’s definitely contributed to the Cubs’ reputation as unlovable losers. Who knows how he will handle a great pitching staff on the Pads?

And, the Pads traded a first-round pick from last year to get Barrett – further depleting their awful farm system. This is good news for the future of the Dodgers.

good points puppyhead01, the move kind of weird me out when i first heard about it. From what i’ve read Josh Bard is a good catch & throw guy that calls a good game WHY MESS WITH THAT? hey better for us right.

I hate to disagree but I think Barrett will help the Pads a bit offensively, since 04 he hasn’t failed to hit below .276, his .307 OBP is about .060 below where he was at last season and while he has only hit 16 jacks the past 3 years, that certainly will bring the Pads a little more pop. But you have to wonder about this move, the Pads are built on pitching and defense and I think Barrett may prove to be a liability in those aspects of the game.

That is a perfect example as to why we should not be looking to trade any time soon. The talent that is out there is less than or equal to our production now, so it would not be wise to trade for something that will probably not help us out in the end. I am sure you are all saying to yoursleves there is plenty of production out there to aquire, but lets be realistic here, we all want Cabrera in Dodger Blue but it wont happen, and the others who have been mentioned like A-Rod and so on but we all know the talent thats out there is not more productive than our already productiveless ball club.

I excited to see this ball club mesh together and win ball games, and last night was another perfect example, i wouldnt want to see someone come in and mess this chemistry up. I know sometimes it seems they are not together, but every club has that as well, but when we show they can play together we are a dangerous ball club.

I also don’t see any savior type players out there that are worth trading for, at least not without giving up a franchise worth of prospects. Our best chances to get a power bat or needed fill-in position for next year would seem to be through the free agent route. Whatever we do in that respect, let’s make sure that the free agent is in his late twenties and not already in his thirties. It’s time we picked up somebody who will peak in their career with us instead of someone who can only decline during his contract with the Dodgers.

I guess, the SCHMIDT situation should close the door on any trade talks. Now we get a chance to see for sure if BILLS can turn that sparkling relief work into quality starts. I understand the Yankees are looking at FREE AGENTS: Tori Hunter Andruw Jones & Ichiro Suzuki, which means they will cost more, but what the heck is money. BUT Ofcourse NOT Ichiro. ONE PIERRE is enough on this team. Although the Dodger’s seem to go for speedy outfieders with NO POWER( I’D GIVE UP ALL OF SUZUKI’S FINE HITTING FOR SOME HOMERUNS). I think free agency is the best bet, especilly if the team remains competitive. That way they can move the BEST players around, instead of trading them (That’s worth the money). I had a bad day yesterday, but I was told to eat bananas, but that wasn’t all, I got on the chat with LASORDA, but I coundn’t type, I guess there was technical problem. The second time with Lasorda, once I met him in person and there was no ink in the pen. That was in the Shea stadium parking lot, but that night my oldest daugher managed to get Ron Cey’s autograph. But luckily, I finally got his signature, along with Mike Piazza and Eric Karros at Bamontes one night. It’s a tough fight out there with them Padres but all I can say is WE CAN DO IT.

First let me say that you need not apologize to me for your outburst. Honestly it was destined to come out from one of us !!! Yes it was over the top and Yes Josh had to make an example of you to settle down the troops. But I really think Josh is also down about the fact that a good number of us from last year’s group are gone or at the very least quite. This new group are so hateful and vindictive that it just isn’t worth the energy to get involved. A rational person would realize he’s doing another harm, but with this group all they care about is being heard and one upmanship. I miss the stories of Dodger past from ASQ and others. Last year we were talking about friendship and getting to know people. This year we’re defending the essence of being a fan and the Love of the Game. These guys don’t realize that win or lose it’s a game to be enjoyed. I coach kids in 3 sports and I can tell you from 20+ years of coaching, it isn’t about a win lose record; it’s about the experience, the kids and the people who enjoy it. And if they choose to be so negative about a stupid game then they’re just not getting it. So cheer up Kevin, get a bag of peanuts and enjoy the game. Push all the other crude away, it’s not worth listening to.

And to those quality people who do contribute in a worth while manor, please know this is not intended for you.

I started posting this off season, but Gary, i must admit i noticed and felt your absence from this blog. I wish i was on last year, bc you are dead on depicting some of the people that can ruin it for a lot of the people… Thanks.

I would like someone to tell me the last big free agent signing for a pitcher that has actually worked out. I really cant think of any. I don’t mean the dodgers, I mean in all of baseball. As much as I am bummed about Schmidt, it seems were not alone. That’s why I would always develop pitching from within and going after bats in Free Agency..

I believe that we will see the Killer-T in the DH slot tonight, as he is 5-for-12 against Halladay, with that laser walk-off jack two weeks ago.

Regarding the Michael Barrett trade, one thing we know about Barrett is that he can’t take a punch very well! (I’m sorry, that was cold, but I just couldn’t resist – LOL!).

Seriously, I have watched Josh Bard closely over the past couple of seasons and I believe that he is a (slightly) better defensive catcher than Barrett (.992 FPCT vs .989 FPCT respectively) – but Barrett does have a little more sock, averaging 9.5 HR’s per yer to Bard’s 4. Their career averages are identical, with their OBP’s and SLG’s very close, as well. This is certainly not what I would call a great trade for the Padres and I do not see it helping them much (if at all). It might even hurt them if Barrett becomes a distraction in the club house, as he was with the Cubs.

Yeah, 53 and Puppyhead, I just don’t understand the trade quite frankly. They have Josh Bard and now they’re going to sit him to play a catcher known only for his offense and that will be restricted by the pitcher’s park known as the Dog Pound. And changing catchers midway through the season can cause major issues for the pitching staff. Not to mention the potential clubhouse issues he may bring with him. Nice job Towers…

Well i have to say i am kind of worried about all you guys, it seems as though you are sad about the trade the Pads made?! hahahaha sorry i just had to.

I also wish i started blogging last season only becasue i wish i could see the conversations you guys had, i think we get a glimpse of that every once in a while, like last night before the game we had a couple sane arguments without getting out of hand… it sure was nice and i have only been blogging since the beggining of this season. It has been nice to read all the different opinions and i hope one day i will actually get to meet some of you at the ball game.

As for tonight i would really like to see Loney in the DH only to get him in without getting him in you know?! but it seems Grady might go with the numbers and Olmedo.

Im looking forward to getting off to another great start like last night and i hope the bats of our middle of the line-up guys stay hot and continue to produce!

I wasn’t feeling well yesterday so I got off the Website early. I went over yesterdays postings, a little while ago, because I’m feeling, somewhat better now, I think those bananas helped, I want to comment on FANSINCE53 posting of 8:21PM PT last night. That was really a very good posting, If I may say-so myself, You really must be good at this stuff because you explained it much better than I did in the Billingsley case. Right now I think they should concentrate on the starting rotation and forget about trades, somehow, I hope I’m wrong(that’s what I think these young guys don’t understand), but right now I think a trade would end up like the Manny Ramirez one with somebody asking for lock, stock and barrel.

gary, sports are fun to watch we all enjoy watcing the dodgers, it just makes it a little harder when our management signs guys like juan pierre. if one was looking to upgrade power and offense, juan pierre isnt the first that comes to mind, matter of fact he is one of the worse. he has absolutely no power, to go with that outrageous contract. thats all. it really is a joke you have to imply people are hateful , vindictive and harmful to others! ( biggest laugher ! ) if some reasonable debate is a bit much for you, there are many blogs where you guys could gather and tell stories and think of ways juan pierre was a good signing for us. maybe title it Gary’s Everyone Agree’s/Perfect World blog…its all just baseball banter gary dont turn it into something its not, no need for the bitterness.

Graffiti – Once again you take an even keel posting, which never mentions your name, and you direct a bitter tone to what could have easily been brushed off. Instead you feel a need to try and be important and only show your ignorance and arrogance.

And just for the record, it’s June 20th and your still spewing the exact same stuff you said last Winter when we signed Pierre. Did this guy stand you up for a date or something ??

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